Fuel Gauge Question

Hi all, new to the forum...I just picked up my 2012 Tacoma TRD Sport 3 days ago.
My question is this:
I have been intentionally trying to run the first tank dry just to get a base L/100KM fuel mileage for my new truck. My fuel light came on half way home from work and i kept driving maybe another 30kms thinking that when i got to the station i would be very near empty. I filled the tank and squeezed 68L into it. According to the manual i have an 80L fuel tank, so is it normal for the gas light to come on when i have 12L or nearly 100kms left in the tank ??
How far have you driven after the gas light has come on ?

 

Normal

 

yes. and i've driven very far.

 

We speak Gallons here friend... j/k
Sounds totally normal. Gas light comes on way early on these trucks.

 

Thanks for the heads up guys...Can anyone tell me L/100KM or MPG what i can expect to get for distance once the light comes on?

 

It depends .

What I have done in the past is , when you fill the tank , reset the trip odometer to zero . When you refill divide your kilometres driven by litres of fuel pumped , this will give you km/litre .

Multiply this value by 80 ( our tanks are 80 litres ) , this will give you your theoretical kilometres you could travel if you ran the tank dry .

Do this a few times will give you an average of your safety margin

 

It is impossible to tell... Too many factors go into fuel mileage.

Why do you want to get the tank so low? I have heard it isn't good to get it super low.

 

FWIW the last few tanks ive tried to fill up as soon as the light comes one and seems to be about 3.6-3.8 gallons left in the tank.

 

Oh , and welcome to TW from BC

 

Correct, 4 gallons (+/- 0.5 gal.) are in the tank when the light comes on.
When the needle is on the E Line, you have 3 gallons still to go.

+/- 0.5 gal:
Full Tank=21 gal.
3/4 Line= 16 gal.
1/2 Line= 12 gal.
1/4 line= 8 gal.
E Light = 4 gal.
E Line = 3 gal.

 

The yellow light comes on when you have 20L(80L at full) left in the tank. So what you're experiencing is normal. I also would suggest not to go right down to empty, it's not good for the fuel system in the truck.

 

20 liters? That's over 5 gallons... How many times did you drive to the light coming on and within a short distance filled up to record the amount? Unless the Canadian Tacos are set different, you should be able to put about 64-65 liters in (meaning there is about 15-16 liters left) to top off the tank.

I refilled many times from various points on my gauge to get the figures I posted... and other Taco owners confirmed that data, so it would seem to be universal.

I am only citing your post because if anyone thinks they still have 5+ gallons (20 liters) left to find a gas station when their light comes on, they may be walking for a ways! Play it safe, at the least, you have 3.5 gallons when the light comes on (level ground), or 13 liters.

Have a good day... and don't run out!

 

In my experience , there is approx 16 litres left when the light comes on , this will reduce depending on how far you have to go to get to a gas station after that , but if I am really close and the light pops on , it's a 64-65 litre top up .

David has it right

 

i had my light come on and i drove about 70 more miles, and and i only filled up 18.8 gallons

 

Never seen my light.
Never put more than 17 gallons in.
I've run the gauge as low as 1/8th, but just barely really.

 

I've ran mine to just under 1/8 tank and 17 gal to fill and never seen the light

 

My light comes on at approx 1/8

 

Welcome to TW.

I don't normally let it get much below a 1/4 tank. I work out in the boondocks though. From my current location it is 29 miles to the nearest gas station, and it's the opposite direction from home. The nearest gas station on the way home is 41 miles. I also carry 2 gallons of gas just in case.

Two times I have made it ~50 miles with the fuel light on. Once I forgot my wallet and headed out of town. The next time I just didn't have money, I had $1.18 in my bank account and a week until payday, had to make it as far as possible before filling up (I love that most gas stations run the approval for $1.00. It saved me that week. Overdrew my account, but at least I could make it to work!)

Even when it was THAT empty though, I still only got about 18 gallons in it before the pump turned off. I wouldn't rely on that gas light though. You'll find yourself sitting on the side of the road with your calculator, thinking your truck still owes you 5 miles.